A 27-year-old race car driver from Jupiter, Florida just won the Freedom 250 Grand Prix — an INDYCAR race held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. — with cars screaming past the monuments at over 200 mph. And the first thing Kyle Kirkwood did afterward was give a shoutout to President Trump.

Kirkwood, who survived a terrifying crash in 2023 when he flipped his car after contact with Felix Rosenqvist and walked away uninjured, took the checkered flag on Sunday from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. President Trump and First Lady Melania were in attendance for the race, which marked the first time INDYCAR has raced on the National Mall. A bald eagle named Lincoln was part of the pre-race ceremony, because apparently someone in the event planning office still understands what country this is.

Kirkwood didn't waste time being diplomatic about who was sitting in the VIP section. "I'm a fellow Florida guy — I live up in Jupiter — so it's cool to see him," Kirkwood said of President Trump.

Then he added: "I don't know if we're gonna get another chance... this was awesome! What a dream come true!"

President Trump had signed an executive order supporting the event, noting that "for over 100 years, American INDYCAR racing has set the pace for motor sports." He called INDYCAR racing "a source of pride and entertainment for our Nation" — the kind of full-throated endorsement of American motorsport that previous administrations couldn't be bothered with because they were too busy issuing proclamations about National Composting Week.

The usual crowd will try to turn this into a controversy. An athlete publicly expressing warmth toward a sitting president — how dangerous. How divisive. Except nobody blinked when athletes were kneeling during the anthem, visiting the Obama White House in matching suits, or tweeting about how America was fundamentally broken. That was "brave." Kirkwood saying it's cool to see the president at his race? That'll be "problematic" by Tuesday.

But here's what actually matters about this story. INDYCAR just pulled off a race on the National Mall. Cars doing 200-plus past the Washington Monument. A bald eagle. The president and first lady in the stands. A young driver winning and being proud to say he's from the same state as the guy in the White House.

That's not a sports story. That's what the country looks like when people stop apologizing for it.